Method of making pile weatherstripping

ABSTRACT

PILE TYPE WEATHERSTRIPPING IS MADE BY WINDING YARN ON A TRAVELING MANDREL, BONDING STRIPS OF BACKING MATERIAL TO THE YARN ALONG OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE MANDREL, AND THEN PARTING THE YARN AT POINTS BETWEEN THE BACKING STRIPS. TWO WEATHERSTRIPS ARE PRODUCED SIMULTANEOUSLY. AN INSERT SUCH AS A LONGITUDINAL FIN MAY BE FED BETWEEN THE YARN AND THE MANDREL TO PRODUCE A COMBINATION STRIP INCLUDING BOTH PILE AND AN AUXILIARY SEALING MEMBER.

Juiy 18, 1972 J, KAYsER 3,677,851

METHOD OF MAKING FILE WEATHERSTRIPPING Filed July 6, 1970 ii o N) 1% r i N a 0 giifi I u. :5 N L iNi 2 vi L 4 l I E 9 $5,! will!!! S m g Q Q (\l INVENTOR.

EMIL J. KAYSER BY 2 T Wu. 5

ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,677,851 METHOD OF MAKING PILE WEATHERSTRIPPING Emil J. Kayser, 1763 Empire Blvd., Webster, NY. 14580 Filed July 6, 1970, Ser. No. 52,359 Int. Cl. B32b 3/18, 3/20 US. Cl. 156-73 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE BRIEF DESCRIPTION This invention relates to a novel method of making Weatherstripping of the pile type, including, if desired, an auxiliary sealing member such as a longitudinal fin.

Pile Weatherstripping is in widespread use in both the automotive and building products industries. Heretofore, Weatherstrip of this type has usually been made by forming strips of pile on a backing sheet, either by weaving or by flocking, then applying a resin upon the reverse side of the backing sheet, and then slitting the backing sheet between the strips of pile. The resin has been applied in liquid form, and cooled or cured before the slitting step.

The present invention contemplates making pile type Weatherstripping without first weaving a pile fabric, without flocking, and without the application of a liquid resin. Briefly, according to the invention, yarn to form a pile is wound on a traveling mandrel and is welded while still on the mandrel to backing strips, preferably two in number, aligned on opposite sides of the mandrel. The yarn is then parted at points between the backing strips to form two continuous weatherstrips. If desired, supplemental devices such as fins may be included, and welded in place simultaneously with the backing strips to form combination weatherstrips.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION The presently preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described in detail in connection with the accompanying drawing, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal, elevational view, partly in section, and largely schematic in form, illustrating the practice of the presently preferred method of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 2-2 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view generally similar to the view of FIG. 2, but illustrating a modified form of the invention.

The process of the invention as illustrated in the draw ing starts with the winding of plastic yarn 10 on an endless, traveling mandrel 14. The yarn 10 is drawn from cones 16 carried by a revolving spindle 18. The yarn 10 passes through guide apertures 19 in a disc 20, which is also fixed to the spindle 18. As shown, the mandrel 14 is simply a flat strip of metal. Its width determines the height of the pile of the Weatherstrip. The mandrel 14 passes axially through the spindle 18 and receives the yarn 10 as it emerges to the right as viewed in FIG. 1.

Backing strips 22 and 23 are fed by any desired guide means (not shown) against the yarn 10* along opposite sides of the mandrel 14 synchronously with the travel of the mandrel. The backing strips 22 and 23 are welded to the yarn 10 by ultrasonic tools 24 and 26, respectively. Anvils 28 and 29 are preferably mounted in opposition to the ultrasonic tools 24 and 26 to support the mandrel 14 and prevent its deflection under the force applied by the ultrasonic tools.

In welding it is important to apply enough energy to impart a set to the yarn 10, conforming it to the shape of the mandrel 14 so that in the finished Weatherstrip the pile will stand upright from the backing strips 22 and 23 and not tend to lie flat.

Following the welding step, the yarn 10 is parted at points between the backing strips by severing devices 30, and the resulting weatherstrips 32 and 33 are delivered to take-up spools (not shown), or otherwise packaged.

The yarn 10 and the backing strips 32 and 33 are preferably of the same, or at least of compatible plastics selected in view of the welding requirements. In some cases, plastics of different respective compositions can be welded together satisfactorily, but the surest procedure is to use the same basic thermoplastic composition, such as, for example, nylon, polyester, or polypropylene for both the yarn 10 and the backing strips 22 and 23.

The drawing also shows the inclusion of longitudinal fins 36 and 38 inthe Weatherstrips. As shown in FIG. 2, the fins 36 may be fed onto the mandrel 14 ahead of the yarn 10 so they will be along the center lines of the finished weatherstrips. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 3, the fins 38 may be fed onto the mandrel after the yarn 10 has been applied so that in the finished Weatherstrip they will lie along the sides of the weatherstrips with the pile at the center. In both cases, the fins 36 and 38 are welded to the yarn 10 and the backing strips 32 and 33 in the single-pass Welding steps illustrated.

When the fin 36 or 38 is included in the construction, greater welding energy should be applied than otherwise to impart the desired set to the fin 36 or 38 also, as Well as to the yarn 10.

The invention also contemplates making a single Weatherstrip by simply eliminating one of the backing strips 32 and 33, and parting the yarn 10 at a single point opposite from the remaining backing strip. The double arrangement illustrated is preferred, however, because of its greater efiiciency.

The practice of the invention enables a substantial reduction in cost relative to the heretofore conventional method of making pile Weatherstripping. Forming the pile by winding is quicker and cheaper than weaving or flocking, and heavier gauge yarn, or even roving may be used. Welding of the backing strips is also advantageous in that it avoids the need to handle a liquid resin. The traveling mandrel is of uniform cross-sectional shape and size throughout its length, thus insuring that the yarn is firmly positioned and properly tensioned for the welding operation.

The only significant limitation on the speed of production appears at present to lie in the winding step. Centrifugal force limits the rotational speed of the spindle 18, but the supports for the cones of yarn can be made strong enough to sustain fairly high speed Winding, and experience indicates that overall production time in the practice of the invention is very significantly shorter than the time heretofore required to convert yarn and backing strips into pile type Weatherstripping.

What is claimed is:

1. Method of making Weatherstripping of the pile type comprising winding yarn on a traveling endless mandrel, welding a backing strip to the yarn while it is on and supported by the mandrel applying enough welding energy to impart a set to the yarn conforming to the shape of the mandrel, and thereafter parting the yarn to release it with the backing strip from the mandrel.

2. Method according to claim 1 including the step of inserting a longitudinal fin between the mandrel and the yarn so that the fin is welded to the yarn simultaneously with the backing strips.

3. Method according to claim 1 including the steps of placing a longitudinal fin between the yarn wound on the mandrel and the backing strip and welding the fin simultaneously to the yarn and the backing strip.

4. Method of making Weatherstripping of the pile type comprising winding yarn on a traveling endless mandrel, welding two backing strips to the yarn along opposite sides of the mandrel while the yarn is on and supported by the mandrel applying enough welding energy to impart a set to the yarn conforming to the shape of the mandrel, and thereafter parting the yarn to release it along with the backing strips from the mandrel.

5. Method according to claim 4 in which the yarn and the backing strips are of selected thermoplastic materials,

UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,312,250 4/1967 Sirignano et a1. 15673 3,082,141 3/1963 Steele et a1. 156--l93 3,311,960 4/1967 Kessler 15672 3,554,851 1/1971 Modighano 156l74 BENJAMIN A. BORCHELT, Primary Examiner J. V. DORAM US, Assistant Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 

